Latest Reviews for Guardalavaca

We went to Cuba for the first time and loved it. The people are so friendly.
Our hotel was wonderful. The food was excellent and lots of choice. The al a carte resturants well good especially the Romantica.

The staff in the hotel were great and very friendly. The service is excellent. The alcohol drinks are so good even the local wine and champayne is good. If you leave a note in your fridge with a peso or 2 they will leave you some.
Rooms are spacious and very clean. Change you towels daily and the sand flys hitch a lift on them and bite during the night (god they are so itchy). Take pleny repellent although the hotel grounds are sprayed at 6pm daily there are still some mosquitos.

The dolphin trip is excellent. You can pay 10 peso and get a ride on them well worth the money.

We would definately go back to Cuba and definately to this hotel could not fault it even though we did have a few days of rain

We stayed at the playa pesquero hotel from mid november until december. We had a fantastic time through out despite there being a few days of rain.

Starting at the flight, I have to comment on how wonderful the first choice air staff were and how helpful they were with our toddler. They did anything they could to make the flight enjoyable with him and were on hand with anything.

The check in was really quick and simple, and it made my toddlers day when we were taken to our room's on the train. We travelled with my parents and we had rooms next door to each other which was good.

The hotels food is good throughout, one of our favourite places was the beer garden. They do beautiful snacks and the staff are wonderful. Our little boy loved the icecream across from the beer garden and everyday he made his little visits there.
All the staff are so friendly and were brilliant with our little boy.

The beach was beautiful, we sat in the same spot everyday and before we were even on the beach the deck chair guys already had them in our place which was alway a nice touch.

The pool is lovely, however the only downside is there isnt much shade at all.

We had a few days of bad rain but this didnt ruin anything for us just meant we did a bit more drinking and eating, when it was raining in the day we would sit by the stage with our drinks as this meant our little boy could happily run around, WE also made use of the disco because with the pool table etc it kept us all happy.

The staff really appreciate little treats and gifts and we took all different things. We left some for the maid but also once you get to know the staff they really appreciate it when you also give them gifts.

We did tip but this isnt necessary at all, we just did it because we enjoyed the service.

If you go you will have a really good time, we are already booked to go back in April.

Have fun

Just returned this week (13 Dec).
Hotel is definitely not 3 star and needs a face lift- although I believe the money is in place for this.
Worst problem was mosquitos. Almost everyone had bites despite repellant, and my wifes face was badly swollen. Could be due to the weather but wouldn't like to say for sure. Do not go without strong creams. Sun, when it appeared, is very strong and with only 3 days full sun have both got decent tans.
Beach is very nice with soft sand but smell of sewage close to hotel- this disappears only a short distance away. 4 pools are good size and plenty of free sunbeds with bars to eat and drink alongside them. Also beach has free watersports but staff expect a tip.

Hotel food was boring and lukewarm. No cereals for breakfast and lukewarm water for tea. Cuban coffee seems to be the order of the day. Eggs everyday for 2 weeks gets monotonous! No windows in main restaurant so consequently the wind and rain blew in. Had good meals in 2 fish restaurants off site, both served lobster and prawns, although sat with umbrella up inside one restaurant due to rain through roof.
Only did 1 trip out( to local village) which was good and cheap.
Rooms are dark but adequate with bathroom and wardrobe. Staff killed and removed a mouse one day .

THE ROOM
I would definitely not recommend this hotel. It is tired and in serious need of an overhaul. It rained for most of our stay over Xmas 2006 and our ceiling had a huge crack and leaked. Quite a few other people's leaked and they obviously hadn't been repaired for years, if ever! I doubt if they will ever be repaired until the roof actually caves in on you. My front wall was disintergrating and there was a green patchy paint over the original brown on our balcony There was one chair, the other one was broken and would probably never be replaced.

MOSQUITOS
Our major problem was with mosquitos. There's a stagnant pond across from the bungalows section which was a haven for mosquito breeding. We had over 100 bites each despite bringing every repellent known to man plus a plug in! BRING YOUR OWN BITE CREAM as the £8 steroid cream the pharmacy sold me did little to alleviate the miserable itching. The rooms were never sprayed or fumigated. The local houses all had mosquito nets.

THE FOOD
The food is just plain awful. The a la carte isn't much better either. There was a bucketful of salt added to everything too. In my opiniion, you can't say ";Oh it's Cuba"; and condone these unacceptably low standards. Every other hotel had decent food, why can't this one? It doesn't need fistfuls of money to improve, just decent catering, managed properly. You can get a voucher to eat in the Brisas next door but you must book well in advance. All drinks are served in flimsy little plastic cups.

LOCATION and THINGS TO DO
The location is lovely, like all the other hotels, right on the beach, just walk down about 20 steps. Don't go with a wheelchair. The 2 pools are clean and there is an abundance of sun beds. There is a diving centre at the end of the beach, they are lovely and take good care of you. They don't take any risks and I would definitely recommend them. You can have a pedalo, windsurf, kayak or snorkel, the snorkelling is great if you swim quite far out to the coral reefs. No motorised sports. You can have a bike to ride along the coast, which is good. You can rent a moped for 24CUCs. Don't even think about hiring a car. The road to Santiago de Cuba is virtually non-existent and so unbelievably dangerous.
A little ";Thomas the Tank Engine"; stops outside the hotel every day at 10.30am and takes you up the mountain and down to a little fishing village for 10CUCs. Well worth the ride. There's also a bus that stops outside that takes you to an historic site but was closed over Xmas, so we didn't see it but I heard it's well worth the journey.

ENTERTAINMENT
There is a classical pianist playing 8-9pm in the main building and the house band play to you as you're eating for an hour, then they play at the bungalow section for a further hour before the dreaded games, or even ballet! It finishes 11.30pm There is a disco, which my teenagers disliked. They found the 24hour snack bar better to meet up and talk and laugh. There is a salsa class in a room at the bungalow section which I never caught. Information seems to be on a need to know basis.
I took the Santiago de Cuba bus trip. It was the worst trip I've ever paid good money for. Avoid a tour guide called Chris! After taking 5 hours to reach our destination to a little restaurant, we had a frugal lunch before guided around the fortress next to it, we actually spent 2 hours in total looking around Santiago by ourselves. I'm sure it can be a lovely trip but you need a good guuide to show you around. We spent the most part just sort of wandering around. The trip home was a miraculous 3 hours - 2 hours less!

In conclusion: After a gruelling 10 hour flight and a lot of money, you need a perfect holiday. Choose a different hotel. Don't take your kids, there's nothing for them here.

We had a wonderful holiday here in spite of the rain(it rained 2 full days and several afternoons)The check in was efficientand although the room smelt fusty at first, after we put the air conditioning on we didn't notice it any more. The rooms had the biggest bed I've ever seen, an iron and ironing boar and evena coffee maker.
The food in the buffet restaurants was really good, so much so that we only had 6 meals in the speciality restaurants, even though it was unlimited access owing to hotel being half empty, and we put on weight (too many cakes and ice cream) The drinks were good, with the Luna lobby bar serving the best diaquiri. For non drinkers there was unlimited tea and coffee any time plus the usual soft drinks.
Both the swimming pools were good, with the water being warmer than the hotel we stayed in on the Dom Rep, but we didn't spend much time round the pools as the beach was so fabulous.

On the beach we didn't have any trouble getting a bed in the shade, because apart from the palapaa, therewere lots of trees to lie under. The sand was like powder, and the sea was warm, although the colour of it changed from day to day.

The activities I did were tai chi most days, and riding twice. The stables were just over the road, and seemed to belong to the hotel as the riding was free, although it is customary to give a tip. If you do want to ride, it is western style and ask to do the bay ride, it wss gorgeous. We also had a massage which was good.
Whike you are there it is a good idea to get out into the countryside ( we went by horse and carriage) to see how the country people live. It is a real eye opener. Also the methods of transport are something to behold and not just the cars. The scenery round the hotel is lovely and don't miss seeing the lagoon. A really good view is to be had on top of the Mares buildings, especially at sunset.
We went on 2 trips Cayo Saetia which was really good with a fun jeep safari and swimming with dolphins, which could have been done in about 2 hours, as ther was about 2 hours hanging about after the swim waiting for the shows. If you do go, take advantage of the sunbeds and get in a bit of sun bathing while you wait.
All in all a really good holiday although shopaholics would be disapointed. Any problems with the hotel were more than made up for by the wonderful staff who couldn't do enough for us . I just hope commercialism doesn't spoil them.

One more thing, if the hotel personel are reading this, your musicians are very good, but the shows were ruined by being too loud, to really hear the music properly,you had to be about 500 yards away form the stage, and therefore missed the dancing which was very good. We know the musicians were good because they came round the restaurants to play before the shows.

This was our first time flying long haul so we decided to take the option of the premier star class, and was it worth it.
We arrived at Gatwick and had no queing, we were booked in within 10 minutes, we were then boarded first and given a pre flight champagne cocktail. All through the flight we could drink as much as we wanted and the inflight entertainment was great for the adults as well as the kids. The meals were excellent too.The comfort was amazing, goodie bags of creams for the ladies, toothbrush and toothpaste.
When we arrived at Cuba we were taken off the plane first, checked through the Cuban airport first too. Our luggage was first too so in the heat this was a god send.
Arriving at the hotel, we were given our room keys and the bell boys took our luggage, a small tip is appreciated ( in cuc)
All though the rooms are basic they are very clean, ladies take your own hair dryer as the ones they supply arnt that good but ok if you dont have bad hair days they do the job !!!
The maids come in each day and clean your room to an amazing standard, they even picked my kids clothes up and hang them up. We left the maid 3 cuc a day and we would find swans made out to of towels on our bed which was a nice touch.
On waking up we found that we had a sea view much to our delight, the beach was amazing, pure white sand and clean towles for the beach everyday, plenty of sun beds too.
The hotel was out of this world, more then a 3 plus, the food was great, plenty of sea food, even though we didnt like sea food there was still plenty of choice.
There were snack bars which served excellent food through the day too. There were four al a carte restuarnats, and you can eat twice in each and all were very nice.
The staff at the hotel are extremely friendly and very genuine, they will bend over backwards to get you anything you want.
On Christmas Eve we had a banquet laid on and they decorated the restaurants which was out of this world, the food was amazing too.
Christmas day we were on the beach, which was a bit serile, and along came a prosession of people playing music and dressed as the three wise men ect, then out of the blue came santa on a catamaran, which the adults loved as much as the kids.
The entertainment was different, low key , and dont expect anything english, we only went a couple of times but it was always full of others watching. According to others it is the same all over cuba. plenty of salsa.
For those that want to party on there is a disco every night on the beach, were they did play salsa and english music, amy be a good idea to take some cd's as i dont think they can get hold of good dance music, but the girls and us had some good times in there.
Through the day there was activities played in the pool, and on the beach.
Please take a pool ball as you cant buy them there.
We went on a trip to see the dolphins and this is a must......... we smiled for days after this.
The staff really do appreciate soap, shampoo, ect or clothes as they are hard to come by in cuba, if you want to leave them cltohes or take clothes the ladies are about a size 14-16. And their kids love basball caps they will do anything to have one of these, one cuban wanted one to give his son one for xmas, wish thats all our kids wanted !!!
The drinks are very strong so be warned !!!!
We have been back 24 hrs and booked again for next november so i think that speaks volumes.

i just recently returned and i had a brilliant holiday,

i only see 2 spiders lots of frogs and cats. the hotel does lack in bars and the bar staff in the main bar was very slow,the disco was much too loud and very cold,the evening shows were tops enjoyed everyone i see. the beach was lovely plenty of shade if you wanted it took a ride on the catermarran what a thrill,ivan the barman on the beach was so friendly always willing to take time out to answer any questions you may have,and the pizzas on the beach was just delish. there was a little puppy on the beach he was so cute then one day he was gone and we couldnt find out what happened to him.

the 24 hour resteraunt was very nice but very limited in choice, in the evening it is a steak house we ended up feeding our lamb (which was actually beef) to the cats coz it was un chewable, i enjoyed my meal in the asian resteraunt, we did book the cuban as well but that got cancelled for technical reasons. i cant complain about the buffet there was always something you could find to eat. i did the dolphin experience and what an experience it was riding on the noses of dolphins that made my holiday.

to anyone going to this hotel watch out for the pesky mossies they try to eat you alive.

Had a wonderful two weeks at this resort, wasn't sure what to expect but was not disappointed. Its on an All Inclusive basis which makes for a very relaxing outlook. Breakfasts are excellent with oodles of choice, you can even have sprouts if desired! Evening buffet was a bit hit and miss, it tended to be the same every day with very slight variation and a lot of the meat and sauces we found to be very salty, as if being cooked in seawater, haha! Beach bar excellent (spot the resident lizard), poolside lunchtime buffet excellent, ice-cream is divine as is their coffee; good and strong! A tip for booking the restaurants: get in early...

The beach is beautiful with plenty of room/beds; the same with the pool. We opted for the beach most of the time as the sea is pleasantly clear and warm.

Had an amazing day with the dolphins, watch out for the 'girls', you're liable to get a shove up the bum! Trip to the cigar factory is a good day-out also, and the speedboat ride is well worth the money.

We saw some spectacular lightning flashes while we were there and a lot of heavy rain...but (I don't know about you) this didn't spoil anything for me. When the sun was out it was HOT. The people are the absolute friendliest i have ever met, they just want you to be comfortable and happy and will bend over backwards to ensure this is achieved. Enjoy!!

We have just returned from our 2wk holiday in Cuba and it was lovely and relaxing! if you wnat a holiday that is full on then the hotel atlantico is not really the place for you. the entertainment in the hotel is poor in the evening with the best thing being the cuban bands that played every night before the main event but to be honest we left the small area for the entertainment after the band finished every night and was in bed by 11.00pm most nights! the bar staff in all the bars where friendly and could not do enough for you, remebering what you have to drink most of the time (without having to give them a tip!.

The food in the buffet is not always the best but there is always something for you to eat. Dont forget to book into the ala carte restaurants,plan when you want to go and book them all at the same time, for us El Bennies was the worst (cuban restaurant) the best was the international restaurant, nice surprise when the doors open|! The staff in the Italian were great and always ready to fill your glass with wine!

The beach was beautiful,white sand and crystal clear water but you need to get down there eariy as not many sunbeds, but plenty in the afternoon after lunch. Make sure you have a good look around the complex as lots of pools that you will not see apart from the swim up bar pool which is the busiest out of the four,there was one of the pools that had only 2 people sunbathing around it with a bar all to themselves!

Summing up this is a very clean very friendly 3star hotel with little frills but good value for money if you are looking for a quiet relaxing holiday.

Like many others we had read all the reviews and found them very useful, although I can't understand how some holiday makers could find fault with this resort, we all had a fabulous time, especially our teenge daughters who made full use of the 24 hour free room service. My only gripe was other holiday makers hogging the chairs round the pool with towels.

This was the first time we had visited Cuba and also our first experience of a 5 star hotel.The hotel staff were all very friendly and helpful. I would certainly recommend e-mailing the hotel and especially Roger. He made sure we had appartments in a really good location half way between the resturants and the pool. We had an apartment with a corner balcony and our daughters and their friends, when they arrived a few days later were all in the same block. Also e-mail your restaurant reservations, this saves time and avoids the queues in the morning. Although they say they restrict you to a visit a week to each of the 4 restaurants, we didn't find this the case. However, because the choice of meals is quite limited (although delicious) you probably wouldn't want to go more than twice to each of them. We only went to the Cuban resturant once and then cancelled our other one. We loved the Japanese restaurant, the entertaining chef was great-make sure you book to sit on the table of eight. The buffet was also fantastic with an amazing choice of food. We were very lucky the beach shack was still open, the perfect place for a glass of champagne and lunch- a beautiful view and music, friendly and very efficient staff, what more could you want? Well possibly to then lolling about in the pool floating on one of chair mats, what a brilliant idea.

I would recommend you go on some of the free morning excursions- the one to the local village is very good and very enlightening into the life of the Cubans. The highlight of the holiday was definately swimming with the dolphins. It was very expensive, but well worth it. Book it through your rep. You cant get it any cheaper. We know we tried it! Just to hear synical teenagers ooh and aah is worth the money. Make sure you pay the extra for the tricks with the dolphins. Amazing!! We also paid for the DVD and it still brings a smile to my face. When watching the show be ready to volunteer. Our 17 year old daughter did and got to do an amazing trick!
Regarding tipping. We tipped all the time, mainly because they get paid so little and some of the students don't get paid at all.

As to what to take. Shampoo, toothpaste,soap, toothbrushes are all very expensive.
Our teenage daughters went round in a gang in the evening. They also went to a disco on the beach, the only place where mosquito repellant was necessary. We found the other holiday makers a little lazy. NO amount of cajoling by the entertainment staff could get them involved in water polo or aqua aerobics. My husband and friend were the only ones who made good use of the free tennis coaching. Make sure you get to go out on the cataarans a couple of times and tip the boys to tip you up! And make sure you get to sit in the jacuzzi at least once and order a bottle of champagne.

We wnt with first choice and although very good if you are doing a two centre holiday i believe the Holiday Place/Club have a better arrangement where you fly into Guardavalaca, then you fly to Havana and then out of Havana. Rather than wasting time waiting around for delaayed planes. If you go to Havana get your hotel to book you a two hour tour of Havana. We did it in aa 1954 convertible Oldsmobile, another highlight and make a reservation for The Paladare La Guaridia-unmissable.